Out of Africa

Even by the modern standards of the international peloton, the 2020 iteration of the NTT team is an incongruous mix of nationalities and cultures. It has come a long way from its African roots - it didn’t start out this way, but Africa’s team now has a Japanese sponsor and a Danish manager. And, it has to be said, not many African riders.

The 2020 roster counts seven, out of 29 - six South Africans and an Eritrean. It’s the lowest total in the history of the team, which started out as an 11-man squad in 2008 with exclusively South African riders, sponsored by MTN.

Since 2008, the team has grown - the Qhubeka charity became a co-sponsor in 2011, and they started taking part in bigger